Internal combustion engines, in particular those which are used in motor vehicles, are certainly configured in such a way that the length of the connecting rod which is assigned to the respective cylinder can be extended, whereby the reciprocating piston engine can work with a variable compression ratio during operation. A shift guide plate is used to change the length of the respective connecting rod, that is to say the spacing of the bearing points of the respective connecting rod, firstly in the crankshaft and secondly in the piston, by way of which shift guide plate connecting rod actuating means which are integrated into the connecting rod can be adjusted. By way of the adjustment of the respective connecting rod actuating means, depending on the selected technology, the length of the connecting rod is changed, for example by way of pivoting of two parts of the connecting rod with respect to one another, the one part being connected to the crankshaft and the other part being connected to the piston.
Oil scraper arrangements which have oil scrapers for stripping oil from the connecting rods are used in internal combustion engines. Said oil can therefore be fed in a targeted manner to an oil sump or an oil container of the internal combustion engine, whereby losses in the degree of efficiency of the internal combustion engine on account of increased splashing effort can be reduced considerably.